


One Last Kiss On Your Pillow

by namsienne (nam_joon)



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Autumn, College AU, F/M, Holiday
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-28 02:28:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12596116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nam_joon/pseuds/namsienne
Summary: Coincidence brings the two ramen lovers, Wooseok Jung and Arden Hampstead, together.Wooseok just started college and is overwhelmed with the workload and feels lonely.Arden, on the other hand, has given up having a life and decided to devote her life to acing the course work load of her major in architecture. The only person who breathes in a few laughs and life into her daily routine is her best friend, Jen.Together they might just be able to make this hellish experience of growing into adults a little better.





	1. Colorful Snowstorms

**Author's Note:**

> ♡ Thank you for reading. │ This piece comes with a playlist: [click here to get to it](https://itunes.apple.com/dk/playlist/one-last-kiss-on-your-pillow/idpl.u-NpXmmrWspYj26r?l=da)

Arden breathed in deeply and let out a slight snore which woke her up. Slowly lifting her head she felt a sudden headache set in, followed by the realisation that she had fallen asleep studying. It wasn’t exactly a first time thing, but she thought that by her second year and twentieth year of her life she’d have her life figured out. 

Well, didn’t John Lennon say: „Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans”? Guess he knew that most of your life happens while you plan to be a little better and, mostly, failing miserably. In exchange you get bad decision, a headache and… _ow_ , Arden turned her head to look at the time on her phone, a really sore neck. On top of that she was late for the first class of the day, Architectural Design 3. Considering how badly she had slept and how hungry she was, she decided to skip the class and come well-prepared to the next class, which didn’t start for another 25 hours. 

First things first: Arden washed her face and went back to bed. Falling asleep on your desk in the dorm-room doesn’t _really_ count as sleeping, right? 

 

Arden got up from the warm protection of her covers and decided to go find something to eat. Her stomach was rumbling and she was feeling a little weak from not having eaten enough.

After washing her face and drinking a glass of water she decided to go down to a corner-store nearby to stock up on some instant noodles. 

On her way to the store she walked past a cart selling hot dogs and decided to get one. If life had taught her one thing, it was that it is always a bad idea to go drinking or grocery shopping on an empty stomach. Munching away on the hot dog she bought, she looked around and noticed the leaves turning orange, red and yellow. Breathing in she could feel the coldness of the air hit her tongue. Finally it was turning fall. 

 

Going into the tiny market she went straight to the shelf with different instant noodles, she knew if she spent too much time looking around she’d buy anything but the thing she initially wanted to buy. Usually the shelves would be filled up to the brim, but today the selection was looking awfully grim. Was today restocking day? 

Arden stood for a minute pondering who would need so many packets of noodles. Of course, there were man students around from her university. But she had never seen the shelves so empty before… did people just get paid? It was the middle of October so that probably wasn-

A tall guy stumbled past her, out of the store, rustling, making tiny noises indicating he was in some sort of struggle. She looked over to him and found the answer to her riddle - it was him, he had bought almost _all_ of the instant noodles, at least the flavours she liked, anyway. 

Determined to get an easy option for dinner she quickly followed him out of the store, walking beside him she said: „Listen, I’m not the type to ask total strangers _anything_ , but you bought all of the instant noodle flavours I like and I thought, if I help you carry these to wherever you live, maybe you could spare one for me?” 

The boy looked over to her, smiling brightly: „Okay, here-,” he gave her a bag filled to the brim with packets of noodles, „if you take this and carry it back to my dorm, I’ll give you one.”

Surprised at her unusual forwardness working, she smiled back at him and exclaimed a little too excited „All right, then! Where is your dorm?” 

„It’s pretty close to here, do you study as well?” „Yeah, I think we go to the same uni, actually. What do you study?” They walked past the stand selling hot dogs.

„I’m a music majors, I absolutely love it, even if it sucks a bit of the joy out of music. How about you?” The boy asked. „Well, I study architecture.” They walked in silence for a bit, approaching the university by now. „Just follow me,” the boy exclaimed.

Following the boy they quickly reached his dorm room. „Is this your bed?” Arden asked. „It is,” he barely managed to say, as she dumped the bag on his bed. „Thank you so much for your help, I know you didn’t just do it out of the goodness of your heart, but here,” he handed her a packet of instant noodles and a can of soda „this is my thanks to you for helping.”

She smiled and took the items, „It was nice meeting you… uh…” she gestured and pointed at him, her face looking concentrated in the cutest way. „Wooseok,” he finished her sentence. „Well, thanks, Wooseok! I’m Arden, by the way.” She said, awkwardly shifted her things from the right to the left arm and stretched out her hand to him. His hand-shake was firm. They smiled at each other. For a moment, Arden hovered in the room, not knowing whether to leave or to stay. 

„So… see you around?” Wooseok said. „I guess,” Arden answered and left the room. 

She took out her phone and texted her friend Jen: „I just met the cutest giant on campus!!”

Her friend quickly responded: „Really? Who??”  
„His name is Wooseok…”

„Is he a first year?”

„I think so”

„Ooh we’re barley starting our twenties and you’re already picking up younger guys, WHAT A COUGAR you are~”

Scoffing at her friends’ text she locked her phone and put it back into her pocket. 

When she looked up, she realised she was in the middle of campus. It was a windy day, too, so the colourful leaves were falling off the trees. She took out her phone and snapped a picture and sent it to her mom saying: „Look, mom, it’s the colourful snowstorms of autumn! I love this season so much, and I swear, it’s not only because of my birthday!


	2. Partners-in-crime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little lowbrow; and a LOT of ramen.

„Jen, do you think people really mean it when they say: „see you around”? Or do you think they just say it out of habit, or because they want to be polite?” Arden whispered to her friend. Jen shifted in her seat, looking thoughtful. The lecture had started roughly twenty minutes ago, but unfortunately Arden and her best friend, Jen, had been mid-discussion. The exact topic of their discussion had slipped both of their minds by now, but they both felt too invested, and, to be frank, they would either be napping or doodling through the lecture if they weren’t talking through it. „I think,” Jen started „it really depends on the person.” She paused. 

Arden nodded in response, loosening her glasses a bit, so she pushed them back. „It also depends on the situation,” she continued „sometimes I guess you say it because you want to be polite, sometimes you mean it. It also heavily depends on who you’re talking to! If you said it to me,” she pointed to herself, „your _best friend,_ I would expect you to be honest.” Arden still nodded. „That’s an excellent point.”  
They both sat in silence for some minutes, pretending to listen to the lecture.

 

„So,” Jen broke the silence „why are you asking?”

„You remember the boy last week who gave me a packet of instant noodles for helping him carry his stock-up for, probably, the whole next year?” Arden asked.  
„Yeah, what was his name? …W … Wooseok? You texted me about him.”  
„Exactly!” Arden exclaimed, and continued: „Well, he said: „See you around,” it’s not like we exchanged numbers. I know where he lives… but that doesn’t give me any right to just pop back in and say: „Hey you said „see you around, but I didn’t see you around so I came by!” Or does it?”

„I guess it doesn’t,” Jen answered „but except for running into you, he really has no point of reference, except for the store, of course. Maybe we could go back there and see if we run into him, and if we don’t, we could take a detour close to his dorm on our way back?”

Arden nodded, trying to look thoughtful. „I knew there was a reason I named you my best friend.”

Jen raised an eyebrow, „God you’re a nerd, maybe we should try to pay attention to this class that we’re actually getting in debt over having, and, yet, can’t be arsed to listen to and learn from.”

„We’re true lowbrows, aren’t we?” Arden said and lowered her brows into an almost-monobrow.

„You know that word isn’t literal, right?” Jen asked her. Arden raised her shoulders in response, she let out a slight sigh and, as a final touch, she added a very subtle outstretched side-tongue in Jens’ direction.

 

After class they both made their way to the tiny corner shop. „Jen, do you need anything?” Arden asked while they were walking. „I guess since you only had that one packet of instant noodles last week, we probably have to stock up.” They both looked around, admiring the beauty of fall. 

Already outside the shop Arden recognised a tall, familiar shape. „Oh my god, Jen, you’re a genius!” Jen pointed inside the store and asked : „The tall guy, _that’s_ Wooseok?!”

Arden nodded, „let’s go inside and look at those instant noodles.”

She walked in, right next to Wooseok who was, incidentally, also looking at the instant noodles.  
„They have a fine selection here, don’t they?” Arden asked.

Wooseok looked down and saw the familiar face: „Oh hey,” he said with a smile „how’s it going?” 

„Same old, same old, just discussed through a whole lecture with a friend. I think I should maybe start paying attention to the class soon.” „That sounds like a good idea,” he said with a giggle. 

„So how’s it going for you, Wooseok? I see you are back, checking out the instant noodles. They really do have a fine selection here, that is if you don’t come here after that one guy, he basically buys the whole place.” Arden moved closer to him and whispered, „Between you and me, I think that guy might be rich.” 

Wooseok sighed, „I’m okay, it’s just hard starting college. It’s a lot of work and, oh,” he said, pretending to be shaken by the situation „You’ve met that guy, too? He is atrocious, buying almost all of the food that makes up the student-food-pyramid... Which only consists of instant noodles.” They both giggled a bit and a silent „Nerds,” came from somewhere behind the shelf.  As Wooseok was almost 6’2 he could easily look over the shelves. He saw a tiny blonde head where the sound was coming from. „Excuse me, do I know you?” He asked. 

The tiny blonde head looked up, „Oh, hey, sorry, I’m Jen! I’m Ardens friend, I just came with her to buy stuff. Please, go on, don’t be disturbed by me. I’ll go look for some chocolate. See you around, Wooseok!” she said and walked swiftly to the candy isle. 

Wooseok shifted his focus back to the head of brown, loosely braided hair in front of him. 

„So…” he started out „Which is your favourite flavour?” He asked, one hand in the pocket of his black jeans, the other hand pointing to the instant noodles. Arden looked away from Wooseoks gaze and over to the instant noodles, she walked towards the packets, grabbing a few chicken flavoured Nissin packets „I am very basic, I love the chicken flavour the most because it’s very versatile in how you can dress it up or down.” Wooseok nodded in agreement and grabbed a couple of firetruck red packets „I concur, but my _very biggest_ favourite has to be the spicy flavour from Shin Ramyun.”  

They walked up to the cash register together and paid for next week’s dinner, just as Arden was about to pay her phone buzzed. After paying and bagging her groceries in her school bag she picked up her phone. Jen had texted her, „Hey I didn’t have much to look for, so I decided to go home, see you tomorrow for Building Science!” 

„Looks like my friend had other plans after our short shopping trip,” Arden said.

Walking back to the dorms they were both relatively silent, mostly because Wooseok spent most of the time texting his friends. Almost arrived at the dorms he interrupted the silence and said: „You care to join me for dinner? My friends all bailed on me and I feel a little sad eating ramen on my own.” After a moment of thought Arden answered „Sure, I have no plans for tonight either.” 

„Great! Do you want to watch something on Netflix while we eat?”

„I heard the new season of _Stranger Things_ is out… do you watch that?”

„Oh yes, I love it,” Wooseok said, opening the door to his dorm room, „but… I thought maybe we could watch something more light-hearted, what about _Master of None_?” 

Arden sat down at his desk, „It keeps popping up in my recommendations but I’ve never watched it,” she admitted. Wooseok pulled up another chair and sat down next to her, „Okay then we start from episode one, I promise it’s really funny.” 

They watched the first episode and towards the end of the episode Wooseok kept hearing small rumbles coming from Ardens’ direction. When the credits came up he asked: „So, should I boil some water so we can eat dinner? I’m starving!” He stood up and continued „It’ll be my treat, as you know, I have a big and wide selection to choose from,” he said as he pulled out a plastic box from under his bed filled with the packets they had brought here a week earlier.

„Wooseok I’ll be at the mercy of your taste buds tonight, just make me whatever you’re having.”

„Okay,” he said, trying to sound effortless. It was very clear that his neurons were firing off at the speed of light, trying to make out which flavour, other than chicken, would make his guest a happy camper. „Close your eyes,” he said, „I want it to be a surprise.”

Arden raised an eyebrow, „I want you to know, that I don’t usually trust strangers so blindly, but you seem like a genuinely nice person, so, _just for you_ I will do it…,” she said and closed her eyes, her heart starting to beat a little faster and stronger. 

He put on the kettle, the bubbling of the boiling water could be heard along with the rustling of plastic from the noodles and clinking of bowls he was getting out of a cupboard somewhere.

Arden heard him putting everything together, the hollow sound of the noodles hitting the bowl, the sound of the water filling up the bowls, finally she heard him coming towards her and she could smell something delicious… something delicious that tingled a tiny bit in her nose. All of this time had gone by and her heart hadn’t slowed down, yet. „Can I look?” She asked and Wooseok quickly answered, „Not yet! I want you to try it first and guess what flavour this is.” 

„Uh, Wooseok, I don’t want to ruin the mood here, but I feel like that requires a lot of trust on my side, for all I know you could be taking off your pants and ju-„ her nervousness was catching up with her and, hearing which direction Arden was taking Wooseok quickly interrupted: „I promise, I’m an upstanding dude, and if I _were_ taking off my pants, you could hear the zipper. These black, ripped pants are tight as hell, there’s no way I’m taking them off without opening the zipper - have you heard a zipper, yet?” She shook her head. „Good, I know it takes a lot of trust,” he said with a smile in his voice „Buuut,” he continued, suddenly she felt something warm close to her face, it smelled good „Just give it a try.” Arden opened her mouth and swallowed the warm broth. It tasted good and she could feel the warmth slowly spreading through her body, but the comfort of this feeling was quickly replaced by a stinging feeling that made her cough. She opened her eyes, „What the hell, Wooseok! This is super spicy!” He started laughing frantically, „I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, I really thought you would like it,” he had to take deep breaths to finish his sentence „It’s my favourite, I thought you had tried it before.”

A big frown formed on Ardens face, „Wooseok, lesson 1: I can’t take spicy food, there’s a good reason I like the chicken flavour. But, admittedly,” she continued „the taste wasn’t half bad… that is, if it wasn’t followed by the pain of the stinging spiciness.” 

Hurrying to the mini-fridge of his roommate he quickly got a glass of milk for Arden „Please don’t tell me you’re lactose-intolerant, too” he said as he handed her the glass. 

„Don’t worry, I love milk! Now, let’s continue this show, you were right it _is_ funny. Thank you for inviting me over here, it is very preferable to a night in alone.” He sat down next to her and gulped down the noodles in no time, she, on the other hand, ate conservatively. After eating she started feeling a little sleepy, but the show was really funny so she tried to keep her eyes open.

During the fifth episode Wooseok looked over to Arden and saw she was barely able to keep her eyes open, she kept waking up from leaning over backwards when she was falling asleep and he decided to guide her head towards his shoulder, so she had a place to sleep. 

Around midnight Wooseok decided to lay her down on his bed and cover her with his blanket. It was the weekend and his roommate lived close to the dorms, so he would always spend the weekends at home and Wooseok would have the dorm room to himself. He went into the bathroom, brushed his teeth and went to sleep in his roommates bed. 

 

The next morning rolled around and Wooseok woke up before Arden, so he decided to go for a shower in the communal bathrooms. When he came back Arden was slowly starting to wake up, too. „Morning, sleepyhead,” he said. The rather unfamiliar voice woke Arden right up. „Wait,” she said, „w-where AM I?!” He looked over to here, his hair still wet from the shower. „You fell asleep last night when we were watching _Master of None_ and, to be honest, I wasn’t going to carry you back to your dorm. Mostly because I don’t know where your dorm is.” 

Arden let out an understanding hum, nodding her head slightly. „Well, I had a blast but I really think I have to go back and follow your exemplary example and take a shower.” 

„Wait a moment! Before you go,” he said and quickly grabbed his phone off the desk and handed it to her „Put in your number, I’d like to meet you again and hang out. This was a lot of fun. I think we could definitely be partners-in-crime when it comes to watching series!” 

Arden looked at him with a raised eyebrow, „I fell asleep, but, all right,” she said and typed in her phone number. „Just text me and let me know it’s you, I’ll add your contact info then.” She got up from his bed and walked back to her dorm. The smell of him still lingered on her clothes, musky but a little sweet. He smelled like a warm, comforting hug after a hectic day. 

 

 


End file.
